2 Timothy 3:14-4:5
Proper 24C
[…] hear about some new way of doing things. What you need to do is to preach the Word in a doctrinally sound way, as Peter did at Pentecost and Paul did at Athens, trusting the Holy Spirit to produce the experience of repentance and faith in Christ. Illustration Idea My friend was livid with […]
John 17:6-19
Easter 7B
[…] Peter’s impending implosion but of the failure of them all. Yet here is how he prayed about those very same people. The good news is that post- Pentecost, everything Jesus expresses here about his band of followers would come true. But even at the moment, it was finally an act of love that Jesus […]
Acts 8:14-17
Epiphany 1C
[…] Mast suggests, then, that the Holy Spirit hasn’t yet fully transformed their lives in the way it had those on whom the Spirit descended on the first Pentecost. The text the Lectionary appoints for this Sunday at least suggests that the Samaritan Christians still need a tangible manifestation of the Spirit who already lives […]
Acts 4:32-35
Easter 2B
[…] was so much better and so much more. Will Willimon says, “The power which broke the bonds of death on Easter, shattered the divisions of speech at Pentecost, and empowered (a man to walk again) now releases the right grip of private property.” Just imagine the powerful witness of a church in which money, […]
Acts 10:44-48
Easter 6B
[…] people! What happens in the story of Cornelius has deep reverberations throughout the life of the church. That’s why, after a rapid fire 9 chapters of ascension, Pentecost, establishing the church, healing, teaching, watching the Gospel spread to Samaria and the Ethiopian eunuch. Hearing Stephen’s testimony before he is killed as the church’s first […]
Luke 4:14-21
Epiphany 3C
[…] all, before this part of Luke 4 is finished. But maybe that is a reminder to also us that even when we know we are doing the Pentecostal work of God’s Holy Spirit, there may still be outward events that can discourage us. But if Luke 4 is any indication, then we can take […]
Haggai 1:15-2:9
Proper 27C
[…] part because paying attention to such a thing can mirror other attitudes that are important. But the Book of Haggai is also a reminder that when the Pentecostal presence of God’s Spirit is among God’s people, the glory of even modest churches outstrips that of Solomon’s temple and all its splendor. Sometimes I have […]
Luke 4:14-21
Epiphany 3C
[…] all, before this part of Luke 4 is finished. But maybe that is a reminder to also us that even when we know we are doing the Pentecostal work of God’s Holy Spirit, there may still be outward events that can discourage us. But if Luke 4 is any indication, then we can take […]
1 Samuel 15:34-16:13
Proper 6B
[…] told at the very end of the narrative that starting on that very day, the Spirit of God came on David with increasing power. And where that Pentecostal power is at work, we can be sure that the kingdom of God is coming on, slow but sure like a seed in the soil, growing […]
2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17
Proper 27C
[…] be wiser than that. Illustration Idea When I was in high school, I accompanied a friend to a youth group New Year’s Eve party at a local Pentecostal church. Mostly the party was what you would expect: lots of goodies to eat, pop to drink, games to play. But at one point in the […]
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